National Republican., 1887-08-15
RELIGIOUS SECTARIANISN.
DIR. TAJMAGE AN ADVOCATE FOR
LIBERTY OF BELIEF,
The Greatest Latitude should ne
Allowed, But Tic Has No Admiration
for Man without a Belief or
Bigot.


him at the passages OF dan."-Judges, xii:6. |
Do you notice the difference of pronnncia- |
tlon between shibboleth and sibboleth? A
very small and nnimportant difference you
soy. And yet. that difference was the differ
ence between life and death for great many
people. The Lords people, Gilead and
EIhrsim, got into grent fight, and Ephraim
was woisted, and on the retreat came TO the
fords OF the river Jordan 10 cross. Order was
given that oil Ephraimites coming there be
sIaiD But how could II be found out who were
EphraimiteA7 They were detected by their pro-
nunciaiion. Shlbboleth was word that stood
for river. The Ephramites had brogue
Of their own, and when they tried to say shib
When II was asked that they say shibboleth
they said sibboeth, ana were slain. Then
,hid they unto him. Say now shibboieth and
pronounce 1t right. Then they took him. and
slew him at the passages OF Jordan" A very
small difference, you say, between Gilcad and
Epbraim, and yet how much intolerance about
that small difference The Lords tribes In
Our time-by which mean the different do.
nominations OF Christians sometimes magnify
very small difference, and the only differ
ence between scores OF denominations to-day
Is the difference between shibbolcth and si6
loleth.
Tie church Of God is divided into a great
number Of denominations. Time would fail
me 10 tell OF the Calvnlsts, and the Armiuaus,
and the Sabbatarians, aud the Bixterlansy and
Quakers, and the Methodists, and the Baptlsts,
aud the kplscopalians aud the Lutherans,
end the CopgreBalionalists. and the Presby.
tcIiaEs. and the Spiritnnlists, and q score OF
other denominations OF religionlsts. some Of
tht m founded by very good men, some of them
founded by very egotlstic, men. and some OF
them founded by very bad men. But as de-
mand for myself liberty Of conscience, l must
civ that same liberty to every other man, re-
mtmbering that he no more differs from me
than differ from him. ] advocate the largest
liberty in all religious belief and form OF wor
ship. In art. in politics, In morals, and in re-
lgion let thtre be no rag law. no moving of
the previous question, no persecution, no In.
You known that the air and the water keep
pure by constant circulation, and think there
is a tendency in religious discussion to Durii
cation and moral health. Between the fourth
ard the sixteenth centuries The church pro-
posed TO make people think Alright by pro.
hibting discussion and by strong censorship OF
the press, and by rack, and g1bbet, aud hot
lead down the throat. tried to make people
orthodox, but IL was discovered that you can.
not change mans belief by twisting Off his
head, and then you cannot make a man sec
things differently by putting an awl through
his eyes. There Is something in a mans con.
| science which will hurl of the mountain that
you threw upon i; and, unsinged OF the fire,
| out of the fame will make red wings on which
the martyr will mount TO- glory.
In that time OF which speak, between the
| fourth and sixteenth centuries, people went
| from the house Of God into the most appalling
| iniaulty and right along by consecrated altars
| tlousness such as the world never heard Of and
| the very sewers of perditlon broke loose and
flooded the church. After a while the printing
| press was freed, and II broke the shackles OF
| the human mind. Then there came q large
| number of bad books but where there was one
man hostile TO the Christian religion there were
| any nervousness In regard to this battle going
| on between truth and error
| =, The truth will conquer Just as certainly
| that God Is stronger than the devil. Let error
|
| Urged on by skeptics shout and transcen.
dentalists spur, let 1t run. Gods angels OF
eagles beak clutches out a hawks heart Gods
vengeance will tear 1t to pieces.
propose this morning 70 speak to you of
There bsese s ey, %ad ana It's
think that this monster, with horns aud hoofs,
Is religion. l shall chase 1t to its hiding
ness, and rip or its hide But want to make
n distinction between bigotry and the lawful
iondLess for pGcuar religious beliefs and
forms OF worship, l have no admiration for
In world OF such tremendous vicissltude
| and temptation, and with a soul that must af
able brightness, In a day when the rocking of
the mountains and the haming of the heavens
andthe upheaval of the sea shall be among
the least Of the excitements, to give account
| for every though, t wor', action, preference,
and dislike-that man is mad who has no re-
ligious Preference But our early education,
4
ton, will very much decide our form of wor
| ship.
A style OF psalmody tina. may please me may
| disp!eaie you. Some wluld like to have
| minister in gown, and bands, and surplice,
and Others prefer to have minister In plain
citizens apparel. Some are most impressed
when little child Is presented at the altar aud
sprinked OF the waters OF a holy benedction
"in the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and Of the Holy Ghost;l and others are more
impressed when the penitent comes up out of
l lFiDninO ~
waters OF a baptism which signifies the wash
ing away OF sln:;. Let either have his own
1he @hsnss aes no nose 10 naye not
good, prefers by gesticulation and exclaima.
ton 10. express his devotional aspiratsons.
Is Just as gSGd % Sf the Other ;nd Every
George Whiiefeld was going over Quaker
rather roughly for some of his religious senti-
as thou art; I an, for bringing all men e the
hope of the Gospel; therefore. If thou will not
quarrel with me about my broad brim, will
GSt quarrel VIII n hes about thy black
]. In tracing out the religion of sectarianism,
or bisoiIy lind sta that great deal OF It come comes
to- caricature and jeer the peculiar forms Of
religion In the. world. and denouuce other
sscs and other % denomtnations @ i II Is very often
and The children grow up. and, after q while.
| 30 ana see LOT themselves ana looking In those
churches. and finding that the people are good
there, and they love God and keep His com
mandment, by natural reaction they go and
Join those very churches; | could mention the
who spent their whole life bombarding Other
denominations and who lived to see their chill
dIen preach the Gospel IN those very denomi
starts in household, and that the subject of Il
never recovery. There are ten of thousands o
bigots ten years old.
from too great prominence Of any one denom-
ination in community. All the other demon
nations are wrong, and his denomination Il
right because his denomination is mos
wealthy or the most popular or the most intu
entiaI, and IT is "our' church and "our" reli
gious organization and ''our" choir and .our'
| minister and the man tosses his head unC
| wants other denominations to know thei
places. 1t is agreat deal better In any commu
nifty when, the great denomination of Chris
by side for the worlds conquest. Mere o1tsld,
prosperity, mere worldly power, Is no evidence
tbatthe church Is acceptable to God. Bette
dral with magnificent harmonies rolling
through the long drawn aisle, and an ange
from Heaven In the pulpit. II there be no Chris
Bigory IS oftt n the child of ignorance
You seldom find a man with large intellec
who Is blgot. y y the man WHO thinks ht
almost always bigot. The whole tendency o
education and civilization is to bring man on
of that kind of state of mind and heart, Their,
was Ill the far east great obelisk, and one side
| of The obelsk was white, another side of the
| obelisk was green, another side of the obelisl
was blue, aud travellers went and looked at tina
obclisk, but they did not walk around It, One
man looked at one side, another Mt another
side, and they came home each one looking a
only one side; and they happened to meet, the
stoTy.says; and they got into rank quarre
| about the color of that obelisk. One man said
| 1t was white. another man said twas green, au
other man said II was blue, and when they
L., thn haaN nf fha nnpt
intelligent traveller came, and said "Gentle
men, l have seen that obelisk, and you are al
right, and YOU are all wrong. Why didn't you
/ walk all around the Obeisk?'
Look out for the man who sees only one side
of a religious truth. Look out for the man
who never walks around about these grea